Say It With Flowers
by AshCarroll aka ShadowDiva
Summary: Postep for Vanished. The way it should've ended.


_Notes: Just a little post-ep to "Vanished". The Tate 'shipper in me was squealing, although I didn't care for the ending much; I thought it was out of character for Tony to have gone rummaging through Kate's purse and taking the information out of her PDA. He's smoother than that. Of course, Gibbs could've been lying, but judging by Tony's reaction, I don't think that's the case. Anyway, this is how I would've liked to have seen it done.___

_Spoilers: Any episode so far is fair game, but especially "Vanished".___

_Pairing: Tony/Kate (Tate), of course. Now really, did you expect anything less coming from me?___

_Rating: PG-13 to be safe. But suffice it to say that if you can watch the show, you can read this fic.___

_Disclaimer: NCIS belongs to Donald P. Belisario and Belisarius Productions, et al. Not mine, don't sue. Italicized line was taken from "Vanished" and belongs to its respective writer.___

_Archive: Go for it, just tell me where._   


Say It With Flowers   
© 2004, By: Ash Carroll   
  
The elevator ride up to their office floor was a quiet one. Gibbs had gone to fill Abby in, and McGee, Kate noticed, had placed himself strategically behind Tony, probably to avoid any further pranks. The other man seemed to be on his best behavior, though; he hadn't tried anything on the junior agent since they'd detained the sheriff and Daphne's father until the state police could pick them up. 

The car came to a halt at their floor, and they disembarked, heading for their desks. He called to her as she was packing up to head home. "Hey, Kate?" 

She looked up, half-afraid of what she'd find him doing. Fortunately, he was just standing by his desk. "Yeah, Tony?" 

"You know any good florists?" 

She looked at him for a moment. "I have one I like." She grinned. "Hot date tonight?" 

"I thought you didn't want me getting too comfortable around you," he grinned back. 

Kate tilted her head, sending him a scowl. Tony laughed lightly in response, green eyes sparkling with mischief. 

"All right. If you really wanna know, I messed things up with this incredibly..." 

"Incredibly what?" 

He spared a glance her way to find her glaring at him in anticipation of what he was about to say and swallowed what he'd been thinking. 

"Hot. Incredibly hot. Look, I'm just trying to get back into her good graces." 

Kate smirked. "Sure you don't mean her bed?" 

He sent her a cheeky grin. "Thought that was too much information for you." 

Rolling her eyes, she grabbed a piece of paper from her desk, jotting down the number she retrieved from her PDA. "Here." 

He pocketed the paper, giving her a nod and a smile as he gathered his things. "Thanks." 

She watched as the elevator door closed behind him. He was right, she didn't want all the sordid details about the troubles with his latest squeeze, but a small part of her couldn't help wondering what he'd done. Considering it was Tony, she decided she was better off not knowing. Bidding McGee good night, she gathered up her own things and made for the elevator herself.   


* * *

Tony glanced at the time on his computer as a delivery man stepped off the elevator carrying a vase of flowers. 

"Delivery for Kate Todd?" 

She looked up from her monitor. "I'm Kate Todd." 

He put the vase on her desk then handed her a clipboard. "Sign, please." 

She scrawled her signature on the appropriate line, handing it back to him with a modest tip. He thanked her then showed himself out. 

"Nice," McGee commented, "who are they from?" 

Kate plucked the card from the bouquet, pulling it out of its envelope. Her eyes widened as she read it and she looked up, glancing at the man seated at the desk across from hers before turning her attention back to the computer whiz. "Tony." 

McGee's gaze shifted back and forth between the two agents in confusion. "What's Tony doing sending you flowers?" 

Kate just stared at her colleague, looking as though she'd very much like to know the answer to that question, too. 

Tony shrugged. "_Kate and I had a tough couple of days, the flowers are a mea culpa._" 

She barely heard the explanation, her mind busy replaying their conversation the night before. He messed things up with an...incredibly hot... 

She blinked. 

That whole time he was talking about her! She didn't understand. He certainly flirted with her often enough, and they'd had rough days before; he hadn't sent her flowers then. So why now? She didn't know, but she was going to find out.   


* * *

The day passed slowly. With no cases demanding their attention, they were left to catch up on neglected paperwork. Kate took the time to straighten her desk and reorganize her rolodex; anything to keep her from thinking about Tony. At least until she was ready to talk to him about the flowers. 

She glanced at them, unable to hold back a smile. None of her other boyfriends had ever sent her flowers. 

_'Tony's not your boyfriend.'_

Her own _brothers_ never sent her flowers. 

_'He's not your brother, either.'_

She didn't really know what he was, but he was definitely in a class by himself. She was still trying to decide how to categorize their relationship when Gibbs looked up from his desk. 

"Dinozzo, Kate, McGee." 

The computer whiz's head shot up "Y-yeah, boss?" 

"Get out of here." 

McGee looked confused as the other two junior agents shared an amused glance. "Boss?" 

"Do you have a hearing problem, McGee?" 

"N-no, sir. Uh, I mean, boss." 

"Good," Gibbs replied, "now get out of here and enjoy your weekend." 

"Y-yes, sir. I mean, boss." 

"I'll expect the three of you here on Monday," he informed them as they gathered their things and headed for the elevator. "And don't be late." He looked pointedly at Tony. "Dinozzo."   


* * *

  


The elevator was awkwardly silent. McGee hit the number for Abby's lab, while Tony and Kate stood in opposite corners of the car, studiously avoiding eye contact. 

"Uh, have a good weekend," the computer whiz offered, giving them a nervous smile as the elevator stopped at his floor. 

"You too," Kate answered with a half-smile as Tony gave a small nod. 

"See you Monday, McGee." 

The door closed and the car resumed its course, leaving the two junior agents in awkward silence once more. 

Tony looked everywhere except at Kate, nervously clearing his throat. She fixed her gaze on a spot above the door. Well, she wanted the chance to talk to him about the delivery that morning. For better or worse, this was it. 

"Thanks. You know, for the flowers." 

"You're welcome." 

"Don't think I'm being ungrateful, here, but why?" 

"I told you, it was a tough-" 

"Couple of days," she finished, "I heard you. And I know it was for McGee's benefit." She turned her gaze on him. "What's the real reason?" 

"I like you, okay, Kate? I like you a lot." 

"You never told me." 

"I didn't think I had to." 

"I'm sorry, was I supposed to be able to tell because you made passes at me? You chase anything female wearing a skirt, Tony. I didn't think I was any different." 

He held her gaze, green eyes darker than usual, and a shiver ran up her spine. "Well you are. And since you didn't get the message, I decided to come right out and say it with flowers." 

She stared back at him, silence stretching between them for several moments. "So I guess you expect me to throw myself at you and beg you to come back to my place." 

"Not on the first date," he replied, sparing her a cheeky grin, "but I'll settle for dinner." 

She stared for a moment more, mouth curving into an answering grin. "Make it Italian and you've got yourself a deal."   
  


The End 


End file.
